Upholstered furniture and method of protecting same



uly 19'. 1927.

E. J. EDWARDS Filed Aug, 1924 EDWARD .1. EDWARDS,

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PATENT or cHIcAGo, ILLINoIs; seamen re s; marina intosi, or

cnIcAeo, ILLINOIS, A. conron'arro t or wns'r; vmemmf UI'HIOLSTER-EIJ AND moniorrxo'rnmne saint.

Application fi led-August 9, 1924. serial-in rtial! This invention relates particularly to the protectionof upholstered furniture employing a finish covering of mohair, wool cloth or tapestry, or the like, from moths.

Suchfinish-fabrics as mohair, wool tapestry, and the like, contain a large amount of oil, or fat, upon which moth larvae thrive. Usually, the eggs of the moth are deposited on the surface of such fabric, and it is the nature of the moth larvae to burrow into the fabric and live on the fats or oils contained in the fabric. This accounts for the destruction of such fabrics.

I have discovered that if a layer of cotton batting is placed immediately beneath such fabric, in an upholstered article of furniture, the fabric is protected; and this is true, even though the usual hair or moss filling contains the moth larvae. Also. where blindtacking is employed for attaching such a finish-fabric to the frameof the article of furniture, the fabric may be protected by interposing cotton batting between the fabric and the frame. Again, where a wool finish-fabric is applied to the rear surface of the back of an article of furniture for appearance sake only, such fabric may be protected by means of a layer of cotton batting disposed adjacent the inner surface of the fabric.

The invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawing, in which Figure 1 represents a vertical sectional View of an article of furniture, such as a chair, protected in accordance with the invention; and Fig. 2 represents a broken per spective view of the front frame member of the chair and the attached fabrics.

In the illustration given, the-article of furniture is shown as comprising a frame A, a seat A, and a back A The seat has the usual frame which comprises the front rail 1 and the rear rail 1*. The seat frame is equipped with a suitable foundation 2 upon Which is mounted the spring structure 3, above which is a burlap covering 4, and below which is a burlap covering, or web, 5. Above the burlap covering 4 is a filling 6, of hair, moss, or the like, over which is stretched a fabric of muslin, or the like, 7. Over the seat structure is placed a finishfabric 8 of mohair, wool cloth, or the like. Interposed between the finish-fabric 8 and the seat structure described, is a layer 9 of cotton batting. Such a layer will effectually from being injured by mothsr The finish fabric 8' isshown blind-tacked;

prevent the mohair, or-woolen covering, 8,.

to'the" lowerypo-rtionoftheseat frame, as

indicated at point 8 and the layer-of cotton batting is continued down or reflected over the seat frame, as indicated at points 9.

Thus, the layer of cotton batting lies adjacent the inner surface of the mohair, or wool covering, so as to protect it at all points, including the points where the blind-tacking and the. folds in the fabric occur.

The back A comprises a frame which includes the upper and lower rails 10 and 10;

a spring structure 11 supported on said frame: a stufling 12 of hair, or moss, interposed between burlap fabric 12 and a muslin fabric 12"; front and rear finish-fabrics 13 and 14; and layers 13' and 14 of cotton batting disposed adjacent the inner surfaces of the finish-fabrics. The layer of cotton 13 is extended over the outer surfaces of the frame members, so that the finish-fabric is protected at all points.

By the arrangement described, a suitable fabric of cheap material, such as muslin, is stretched over the filling of hair, or moss,

and is tacked to the frame, and the layer of I cotton batting is interposed between the mus.- lin fabric and the finish-fabric of mohair or wool. Thus, the cotton batting serves not only to prevent hair, or moss, from working through to the-finish-fabric, but lies immediately adjacent the inner surface of the finish-fabric so as to preserve the finishfabric from injury by moths. It is known that the moth larva is hatched from an egg which is usually laid in the nap of mohair, or wool cloth, and that the larva protects its existence by burrowing down through the fabric, after which it lives its cycle of life, and destroys the fabric by eating the nap from underneath, building its cocoon and entering the pupa state usually in the hair or other filling of the furniture, though not necessarily finding food in such filling. Experiments have demonstrated that for some reason a layer of cotton interferes with the cycle of existence, or, at any rate, protects the mohair covering, or wool covering, from injury. It may be added that the cotton batting employed shouldbe unglazed, or 7 without any substantial glazing, especially as concerns the side which is adjacent the mohair or wool cloth. Cotton linters, or a pad of uncarded cotton, will serve the same purpose, and is to be understood as within the appended claims.

. The foregoing detailed description has been given for clearness of understanding only and no unnecessary limitations should be understood therefrom, but the appended claims should be construed as broadly as permissible, in view of the prior art.

What I regard as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is: V

1. An upholstered article of furniture comprising a frame, a springstructure mounted thereon, a filling over the spring-structure, a fabric stretched over said filling and secured in position,v a finish-fabric tacked to said frame, which finish-fabric commonly is subject to attack by moths, and a protective layer of unglazed cotton batting interposed between said fabrics.

2. In an upholstered article of furniture, a frame-member, a finish-fabric blind-tacked to said frame-member, which finish-fabric commonly is subject to attack by moths, and a protective strip of unglazed cotton batting interposed between said fabric and said frame-member and extending into the fold of said fabric where the blind-tacking occurs.

EDWARD J. EDWARDS. 

